We arrived at school dressed as evacuees. We carried only a few possessions and of course the gas mask boxes we had made in DT. The school bell rang and soon it was time to leave behind all that was familiar. Our teachers led the way on the long walk to Laleston. The Evacuation had begun!

At Laleston, we boarded a bus bound for the Carmarthenshire countryside – away from the bombing raids that threatened our cities. We could empathise with the evacuees of 1939 / 1940 and really got a sense of how it must have felt for children to leave behind their homes and families.

An hour or so later, we arrived at the Gwili Railway. Our train to the countryside was due to arrive at 10.50 a.m. We waited nervously yet with some excitement about the adventure that lay ahead.

We were invited into the railway signal box where Mr. Davies the signalman told us all about how the signal box works. We had an opportunity to ask him lots of questions. Following this we visited the Gwili Railway Museum to look at and read about the interesting artefacts there.

Soon the steam train was due to arrive and we waited nervously at the platform. With a blast of steam and a shrill whistle, the steam train heaved into the station. It was time to board the steam train and so we made our way into the carriages. We sat next to our friends in the carriages but we did not know what to expect. Where would we end up? We were soon on our way. With clouds of smoke billowing from its funnel, the train left the station.

Our journey at an end, we had arrived in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by nothing but fields, streams and woodland.Our thoughts turned to where we would be billeted. Who would we live with? The station master led the way to the Billeting Office where we would be allocated new homes.

The nurse checked our hair for nits! She also looked at our hands, nails and tongues. Before long we found ourselves standing in front of the Billeting Officers. They looked at the Billeting list from the War Department to see where we would live as evacuees.

Some of us went to live with Jones the farmer. We would have to help out on the farm with chores such as milking and feeding the animals. Some of us went to Jones the butcher. We’d have to help out in the shop. Some of use went to Jones Six Foot - the gravedigger!

The Air Raid Warden talked to us about the importance of blacking out all lights at night. He showed us how the air raid siren was sounded. Later we followed a trail of clues. We had to hunt around the railway station to find the six cities that were hit by bombing raids and find out why they were targetted by the Luftwaffe. Soon it was time to come home. Our day as evacuees was at an end. We had really thought about what it must have been like to be an evacuee during World War Two. Thanks to all at the Gwili Railway.